Month: August 2016

Today’s buy to let deal is a WELL PRESENTED modern first floor apartment situated within walking distance of Pinhoe village which benefits from a number of shops and a train station. The property in brief comprises of 2 bedrooms, modern fitted kitchen, bathroom and lounge area with a Juliet balcony. The property also benefits from gas central heating, double glazing and 1 allocated parking space.

This property would suit either a first time buyer or someone looking for an investment opportunity. The market rent for this property is £725 pcm. Based on a purchase price of £160,000 you would be looking at a Healthy YIELD of 5.4% !

Check out the details on the link below and get in touch with us if this is the type of thing you’re looking for!

89% of Exeter Homeowners are over 35 – The effect of their Brexit vote on the Exeter Property Market

Well it’s 8 weeks since the Referendum vote and we have had a chance to reflect on the momentous decision that the British public took. Many of you read the article I wrote on the morning of the results. I had gone to bed the night before with a draft of my Remain article nicely all but finished, to be presented, at just after 5am, with the declaration by the BBC saying we were leaving the EU. I don’t think any of us were expecting that.

If you want to read a copy of that original Post Brexit blog post, please visit my blog www.exeterpropertyblog.com and scroll back to late June to find it. In this article I would like to take my thoughts on from that initial article and now start to see the clearer picture as the dust settles on the UK, but more importantly, the Exeter Property Market.

In case you weren’t aware, the residents of the Exeter City Council area went against the National mood and voted as follows…

Exeter City Council Remain Votes 35,270 (55.3% of the vote)

Exeter City Council Leave Votes 28,533 (44.7% of the vote)

Exeter City Council Turnout 73.8%

I have been reading there is some evidence to indicate younger voters were vastly more likely to vote Remain than their parents and grandparents and, whilst the polling industry’s techniques may have been widely criticised, following them getting both the 2010 General Election and the recent Brexit vote wrong, anecdotally, many surveys seem to suggest there was a relationship between age and likelihood to support leaving the EU.

Interestingly, the average age of an Exeter resident is 38.1 years old, which is below the national average of 39.3, which might go someway to back up the way Exeter voted? What I do know is that putting aside whether you were a remain or leave voter, the vote to leave has, and will, create uncertainty and the last thing the British property market needs is uncertainty (because as with previous episodes of uncertainty in the UK economy – UK house prices have tended to go down).

Interestingly, when we look at the Homeownership rates in the Exeter City Council area, of the 29,912 properties that are owned in the Exeter City Council area (Owned being owned outright, owned with a mortgage or shared ownership), the age range paints a noteworthy picture.

Age 16 to 34 homeowners 3,421 or 11.4% (Nationally 9.6%)

Age 35 to 49 homeowners 8,147 or 27.2% (Nationally 29.2%)

Age 50 to 64 homeowners 8,724 or 29.2% (Nationally 30.7%)

Aged 65+ homeowners 9,620 or 32.6% (Nationally 30.5%)

So, looking at these figures, and the high proportion of older homeowners, you might think all the Exeter City Council area homeowners would vote Remain to keep house prices stable and younger people would vote out so house prices come down- so they could afford to buy?

But there’s a risk in oversimplifying this. The sample of the polling firms are in the thousands whilst the country voted in its millions. Other demographic influences have been at play in the way people voted, as early evidence is starting to suggest that class, level of education, the levels of immigration and ethnic diversity had an influence on the way the various parts of the UK voted.

So what I suggest is this – Don’t assume everyone over the age of 50 voted ‘Leave’ and don’t assume most 20 somethings backed ‘Remain’; because many didn’t!

.. and the Exeter Property Market – well read my original article in the Exeter Property Blog and you can make your own mind up.

I had an interesting question the other day from a homeowner in Clyst Heath who asked me the difference between asking prices and values and why it mattered. When it comes to selling property, there must be agreement between the purchaser (buyer) and seller (vendor) for a property sale to take place. The value a buyer applies to a property can massively differ from the value a seller or mortgage company places upon it. The seller, the buyer and the mortgage company must find an agreeable value to assign to a property so the sale can proceed.

In many of my articles about the Exeter property market, I talk about values, i.e. what property in Exeter actually sells for, but I haven’t spoken about asking prices for while. Now asking prices are important as they are one of the four key matters a potential buyer will judge your property on (the others being location, bedrooms and type). Price yourself too high and you will put off buyers. So let’s take a look at the Exeter numbers.

Over the last 12 months asking prices (i.e. the price advertised in the paper and on Rightmove) in Exeter have decreased by 1%, taking the average asking price in Exeter to £321,300 (down from £323,500 twelve months ago).

Interestingly though, when we look at, say detached and terraced property, a slightly different picture appears. Twelve months ago, the average asking price for a detached house in Exeter was £471,300 and today its £467,200 (a drop of 1%); whilst over the same 12-month period, the average asking price of a terraced property was £257,800 a year ago, and today its £279,200 (a rise of 8%).

However, my research shows that the supply of property for sale in Exeter is beginning to increase. In December 2015, there were 817 on the market in Exeter today there are 855 properties on the market (up 5%). This will mean homeowners looking to sell will need to be conscious of how their property compares against others on the Exeter property market. The Exeter property market still has substantial momentum and sufficient demand remains. This noteworthy increase in supply since Christmas is currently providing more choice for buyers.

… And here is the second point to make. Asking prices are one thing, but what a property sells for (i.e. value) is a completely different matter. These are the average prices achieved (i.e. what they sold for or the average value) for property in Exeter over the last 12 months…

Overall Average £262,700

Detached £388,400

Terraced £226,100

You can quite clearly see, there is a difference between what people are asking for property and what it is selling for. The underlying fundamentals of low interest mortgages and tight supply remain prevalent in the Exeter property market however, the number one lesson has to be this … if you want to sell, be realistic with your pricing.

Call me old fashioned, but I do like the terraced house. In fact, I have done some research that I hope you will find of interest.

In architecture terms, a terraced or townhouse is a style of housing in use since the late 1600’s in the UK, where a row of symmetrical / identical houses share their side walls. The first terraced houses were actually built by a French man, Monsieur Barbon around St. Paul’s Cathedral within the rebuilding process after the Great Fire of London in 1666. Interestingly, it was the French that invented the terraced house around 1610-15 in the Le Marais district of Paris with its planned squares and properties with identical facades. However, it was the 1730’s in the UK, that the terraced/townhouse came into its own in London and of course in Bath with the impressive Royal Crescent.

However, we are in Exeter, not Bath, so the majority of our Exeter terraced houses were built in the Victorian era. Built on the back of the Industrial Revolution, with people flooding into the towns and cities for work in Victorian times, the terraced house offered decent liveable accommodation away from the slums. An interesting fact is that the majority of Victorian Exeter terraced houses are based on standard design of a ‘posh’ front room, a back room (where the family lived day to day) and scullery off that. Off the scullery, a door to a rear yard, whilst upstairs, three bedrooms (the third straight off the second). Interestingly, the law was changed in 1875 with the Public Health Act and each house had to have 108ft of livable space per main room, running water, it’s own outside toilet and rear access to allow the toilet waste to be collected (they didn’t have public sewers in those days in Exeter – well not at least where these ‘workers’ terraced houses were built).

It was the 1960’s and 70’s where inside toilets and bathrooms were installed (often in that third bedroom or an extension off the scullery) and gas central heating in the 1980’s and replacement Upvc double glazing ever since.

Looking at the make up of all the properties in Exeter, some very interesting numbers appear. Of the 49,005 properties in Exeter …

6,499 are Detached properties (13.2%)

12,574 are Semi Detached properties (25.6%)

15,909 are Terraced / Town House properties (32.4%)

13,728 are Apartment/ Flat’s (28.0%)

And quite noteworthy, there are 295 mobile homes, representing 0.8% of all property in Exeter.

When it comes to values, the average price paid for an Exeter terraced house in 1995 was £49,720 and the latest set of figures released by the land Registry states that today that figure stands at £210,000, a rise of 322% – that’s not bad at all is it.

But then a lot of buy to let landlords and first time buyers I speak to think the Victorian terraced house is expensive to maintain. I recently read a report from English Heritage that stated maintaining a typical Victorian terraced house over thirty years is around 67% cheaper than building and maintaining a modern house- which is quite fascinating don’t you think!

For more thoughts on the Exeter Property Market – visit the Exeter Property Market Blog www.exeterpropertyblog.com

1 bedroom first floor apartment presented to an extremely high standard forming part of an exclusive development on the rural outskirts of this sought after village. Longmeadow is a small private estate set in the wonderful grounds of the former manor, Hay House and is approached by a long sweeping drive, surrounded by National Trust Land. The apartment is accessed via a communal front door, with steps leading to the 1st floor. The flat is bright and spacious and has a well equipped modern kitchen, newly fitted bathroom, lounge and large double bedroom. Outside there are extensive grounds, drying area and allocated parking, If the setting and finish of the property is to be appreciated, then an internal viewing is highly recommended.

In today’s market, the rent should be in the region of £675 pcm which would offer a very respectable return of 5.09% per annum based on the asking price of £159,950.

Not a bad return for anyone looking for a beautiful INVESTMENT PROPERTY in a rural setting.

About The Author

Thank you for visiting this blog. Northwood Exeter are a leading estate agent and professional team of local, friendly experts who are passionate about property. We are proud of our reputation across Exeter and the surrounding areas earned through our knowledge of the property market.

I have always shared my thoughts on the local property market in Exeter with my landlords, but now I want to share with everyone in the town.

On this blog, Gail Barnes I will talk about what is happening in the town's property market itself, even looking at specific streets or housing estates. At other times, we will post what we consider decent buy to let deals. Some will be on the market with me as we also sell property, but others will be on the market with other agents in Exeter. We like to look at the whole of market and give you, what we consider the best investment opportunities.

If you see a potential deal, and want a second opinion, without hesitation, email the Rightmove link to exeter@northwooduk.com , we will always give you our honest opinion on the property and its investment potential. (both good and bad) .

About The Blog

This blog follows the buy-to-let and sale market in Exeter. You'll find tips, guidance, and analysis that relates specifically to Exeter and you'll also find properties from all the estate agents in the town on here that may make decent investments. I operate Northwood Exeter with Gail Barnes and if you're thinking of buying a property to let in Exeter or just want an up to date Market Appraisal of your home, please do not hesitate to call me on 01392 435 130 or e-mail on exeter@northwooduk.com